COVID19 CAN DISRUPT YOUR BUSINESS, FIND OUT HOW WE CAN HELP YOU STAY PROTECTED. LEARN MORE.
DATASHIELD Client LoginCOntactCOVID19 CAN DISRUPT YOUR BUSINESS, FIND OUT HOW WE CAN HELP YOU STAY PROTECTED. LEARN MORE.
DATASHIELD Client LoginCOntactChicago, Illinois:
Data Defenders is pleased to announce that the Aurora City Council has voted to expand an existing cyber protection contract to $3.2M over 5 years protecting the City’s critical IT infrastructure vital to operations and the safeguarding of citizens. This vote indicates the high level of trust and confidence that the Smart City of Aurora has in Data Defenders and its service offering, Data Shield® Managed Security Services, a comprehensive and turn-key solution for municipal organizations.
The agreement includes protection for the City’s Enterprise Information Technology, as well as its Operational Infrastructure, including the City’s water treatment facility. A recent cyber hack in a Florida municipality revealed critical vulnerabilities of city services that put thousands of citizens at risk of poisoning. Forward-looking City leaders of Aurora see the value in taking proactive measures to maintain citizen safety, prevent service interruptions and avoid multi-million dollar cybersecurity incidents that have hit municipalities across the country.
“Municipalities have an enormous challenge facing them today in protecting their information and technology infrastructures from an extremely active and potent threat landscape. They are often finding it extremely difficult to effectively face this cyber threat challenge, costing them hundreds of millions of dollars in total losses per year,” says Cyrus J. Walker, Managing Principal, Data Defenders.
In expanding their agreement with Data Defenders, the City of Aurora has chosen high quality protection today as an insurance policy that will not only prevent cybersecurity incidents but also reduce the time and money necessary to solve any future problems. This expanded agreement with the Chicago-based company forms the basis for a cybersecurity plan that City Officials believe could be a model for municipalities across the country.
“The expansion of the City of Aurora’s strategic partnership with Data Defenders is a demonstration of our enduring commitment to protecting critical infrastructure. The recent events in Oldsmar, Florida and Colonial Pipeline on the East Coast highlights an ever-increasing need for municipalities and/or agencies that control critical infrastructure to ensure appropriate countermeasures are in place to mitigate threats. Simply put… this partnership better enables the City of Aurora to Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond and Recover from worst-case scenarios and ensure delivery of critical infrastructure services to staff and constituents”, says Michael Pegues, Chief Information Officer, City of Aurora.
Data Defenders is the lead organization in providing expert cybersecurity services for the City of Aurora, and through a complementary partnership with eSentire, an expert in Managed Detection and Response (MDR), they are able to jointly provide cost-saving, nimble and innovative cybersecurity services including vulnerability management, penetration testing, disaster management, and security governance and policy.
According to Bob Layton, eSentire Chief Channel Officer, “We are proud to work with Data Defenders to help the City of Aurora meet its vision of harnessing all the benefits technology can offer, while keeping its operations and citizens safe from bad actors intent on using cybercrime to hold cities hostage.”
About Data Defenders
Data Defenders is a global end-to-end cybersecurity service provider, including risk advisory, response, managed security and technology solutions. Founded in 2005, Data Defenders established itself as a pioneer in protecting operational integrity of IT infrastructure and election systems. Data Defenders now leads the industry with an innovative use of technology with service solutions like Data Shield® Managed Security Service, Data D-Fense 24/7™, Applied Computer Forensics™ and Elections Systems Auditing. Data Defenders, LLC is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
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